Get Your Motor Running

The art of travel is subjective.

Some will prioritize visiting the tourist highlights of their chosen destination. Others, though, want to investigate a location methodically, particularly if it’s a new country. They want to go beyond the tourist traps to discover its soul, and there’s no better way to do so than to hop into the driver’s seat and put the pedal to the metal.

When you plan a vacation around a long, scenic drive, the space between each day’s start and stop becomes the highlight. As you motor down long stretches of highway, the landscape transforms, the houses change from familiar suburban to uniquely rural. And if anything catches your eye—a mountain pass overlook, a handwritten sign for fresh cider, or a single-room museum in a small village—you can pull over to embrace a moment of unscripted spontaneity.

Along the way, fuel up at gas stations in the middle of nowhere, perusing the aisles to see what candy bars fill the shelves and what sodas line the cooler. Mundane things back home, yet wonderfully intriguing in a place you’ve never been.

When you embark on a road trip, you’re free to follow your own path. But which path should you choose? Here are five of the world’s finest drives, chosen for their scenery, their histories, and the unforgettable places they take you to.

Pacific Coast Highway, United States

The Pacific Coast Highway (aka the PCH, aka Highway 1), stretches 656 miles from just below Los Angeles up to Leggett in Northern California. Carved into unstable cliffs with sheer drops to the sea, the road is an enduring symbol of the American West, offering a dramatic front-row seat to the collision of coastal mountains and the unrelenting Pacific Ocean.

You can drive its entire length in a long day, but it’s best to take in sections as slow as possible. In particular, the stretch between Monterey and Santa Barbara—cutting gorgeously through Big Sur country—delivers tight cliffside curves and vertiginous views into the roaring Pacific. Along the way, snap pics of the Art Deco architectural marvel Bixby Bridge, hike through wind-sculpted Monterey cypress trees at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, and spend a relaxing afternoon admiring McWay Falls, an 80-foot waterfall that pours directly onto a pristine beach.

North Coast 500, Scotland

Technically, this route should be called the North Coast 516, its total length in miles, but NC500 has a nicer ring to it. Beginning and ending in Inverness, this loop traces the rugged northern coast of the Highlands, giving you a “greatest hits” package of northern Scotland: mist-shrouded mountains, ruined cliffside castles, glacier-carved lochs, remote fishing villages, even Caribbean-style beaches. You can tackle it via motorbike or bicycle, though renting a campervan to stay at scenic campsites offers more freedom to go at your own pace.

The NC500 encourages you to take daily detours, with many must-sees—and must-eats—along the way. You can spot a 4,000-year-old Neolithic cemetery at Clava Cairns, just a mile from Culloden, site of a famous 1746 battle between the Scottish and British that ended the last Jacobite rising. You can try the country’s national dish, haggis (sheep organs minced with oatmeal, onions, suet, and spices, traditionally boiled in the animal’s stomach), at George Cockburn & Son butchers in Dingwall, “Scotland’s First Champion Haggis Maker.” Or maybe the cheese and whisky pairing at the Glenmorangie House hotel is more to your liking. That’s the beauty of the NC500: with sightseeing options based around history, adventure, golfing, and more, it’s easy to find what you like.

Romantic Road, Germany

Germany’s Romantic Road (Romantische Straße) will mesmerize you with 290 miles of old-world charm between Würzburg and Füssen. While it was named as part of a tourism campaign in 1950, the road still earns its amorous moniker today. These winding lanes are filled with scenery that makes your heart swell (in a healthy way). Sprawling vineyards basking in the sun, fairytale castles standing tall against the grand Alps, rolling countrysides sparkling with lakes, and medieval towns protected by ancient walls encourage you to stop early and often.

Even considering its relatively short length, the Romantic Road packs in the sites. Its northern starting point features an icon of Baroque architecture, the Würzburg Residence, an 18th-century palace and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Next is the Old Main Bridge (Alte Mainbrücke),also in Würzburg, a 15th-century structure lined with stone statues of saints and kings. It’s tradition to sip a glass of local white wine while standing among the statues. The top highlights, however, are the Old Town (Rothenburg ob der Tauber), a well-preserved medieval walled town perched on a plateau above the Tauber river in Bavaria, and Neuschwanstein Castle, a fortress so picturesque and grandiose it inspired Walt Disney when creating Cinderella’s Castle in Disneyland.

Great Ocean Road, Australia

Stretching from Torquay to Allansford in the state of Victoria, Australia’s Great Ocean Road is the world’s longest war memorial. Built by World War I veterans in honor of those who did not return, the 150-mile stretch was originally conceived to connect isolated towns. Nowadays, it connects much more—world-famous surf beaches and rugged coastal monuments, emerald-green rainforests and kangaroo-filled golf courses— making it one of southern Australia’s most popular attractions.

Every mile along the way gives you a chance to say g’day to greatness. The undeniable stars are the Twelve Apostles, massive limestone stacks rising out of the surf, which are simply breathtaking even though only nine ever existed and only seven remain. (Fun fact: One of the original names of the formations was the Sow and Pigs, but Twelve Apostles was officially chosen to attract tourists.) Another nearby piece of wind-carved art is Loch Ard Gorge, a smooth, sheltered inlet of water framed by towering coastal cliffs. More nature awaits you at Kennett River, where koalas crawl (very slowly) on eucalyptus trees, and at Great Otway National Park, home to fern-framed forest walks to hidden waterfalls.

Ruta 40, Argentina

For over 3,200 miles, Ruta 40 runs down the entire length of Argentina, paralleling the Andes from the sea-level coal towns of southern Patagonia to the windswept salt flats near Bolivia. It is, quite simply, one of the longest, most diverse highways in the world, connecting 20 national parks, 18 rivers, and dozens of jaw-dropping mountain passes.

Its most scenic section is the Road of the Seven Lakes (Camino de los Siete Lagos), a 68-mile segment from San Martín de los Andes to Villa La Angostura. Here it weaves through dense Andean forests while skirting those seven crystal-clear glacial lakes, all backdropped by snow-dusted volcanic peaks. If that doesn’t persuade you to plan a trip south, you can anchor your drives in the nearby city of Bariloche—the Argentine capital of chocolate!—to mix up your scenic drives with fly-fishing, kayaking, and world-class steaks.

With these vacations, you are literally in the driver’s seat, deciding where to go next, how fast to get there, and how many unforgettable detours to add along the way. The drives can be long or short, but the potential experiences are endless.